Strategic Initiatives
In January 2005, the State Board asked the Georgia Public Policy Foundation (GPPF) to conduct a research project to identify key issues which would help the Technical College System of Georgia to continue offering the best possible services for our students and meet the growing need for a highly skilled workforce.
The Foundation identified a number of strategic initiatives of significant importance. The State Board worked to narrow the scope to four strategic initiatives:
1. Organization
2. Finance
3. Marketing
4. Programs
GPPF’s Research Project
The Georgia Public Policy Foundation visited campuses and conducted extensive interviews with members of the Workforce Development Task Force from Governor Perdue’s Commission for a New Georgia, other state agencies and with technical college presidents, administration, faculty, staff and students.
Key Strategic Initiatives
The State Board has asked Commissioner Vollmer, Department of Technical and Adult Education (DTAE) staff and administration from the colleges to study these four key areas, as well as a conduct a review of the State Boards’ Policies and Procedures.
Committees have been assembled and many will issue preliminary reports to various standing committees of the State Board. The committee chairs will report and make recommendations to the full State Board.
1. Organization
Regionalization - Regionalizing programs will provide highly effective and efficient delivery of services, which will eliminate duplication of programs and makes for good use of the tax payer dollars. It will also provide for a better management of capital outlay funds and human resources.
Consortia -After DTAE was created by legislative action, several of the technical colleges began meeting on a monthly basis to share information and best practices. The six consortium format was derived by considering statewide demographics and also the number of technical colleges within a given region. The end result was six consortia: Northwest, Northeast, West Central, East Central, Southwest, and Southeast. Each consortium has five or six technical colleges.
Each consortium meets on a scheduled basis to discuss issues that were generated by the group themselves. Based on the interviews conducted by the Georgia Public Policy Foundation, many of the technical college presidents felt a review of the value and structure of the consortia would be in order.
Centers of Excellence - The State of Georgia has a critical interest in retaining, growing, and attracting employers in strategic industries. The State Board will work to identify those technical colleges with successful programs that support the Commission for a New Georgia’s strategic industries: aerospace, agribusiness, energy and environmental, healthcare and eldercare, life sciences and logistics and transportation. A committee will review examples of what other states are doing to establish centers of excellence.
2. Finance
A committee of Presidents, Vice Presidents of Administration, Instruction, and Student Services, as well as Central Office staff, staff from the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget, House Budget Office and Senate Budget Office has been diligently working to review the current funding formula and implement performance-based funding.
This committee will make recommendations to the Board’s Business Operations, Technology and Administration Committee. The performance based-funding model will include performance measures such as graduation rates, retention and placement rates.
3. Marketing
It is imperative that teachers, counselors, parents and students know that technical college is a viable option for postsecondary education. The way to accomplish this is through a strong and effective marking plan, one that includes a recognizable logo.
4. Programs
In order to maintain, strengthen and develop new partnerships and foster a seamless education process, a review of the System’s curricula and standards is in order. The State Board encourages and supports collaborative projects such as data sharing and student tracking with other education agencies. The State Board supports the development of a process that can forecast cutting edge programs and be ready to provide programs to stay competitive.
5. Policies and Procedures
The State Board has authorized a review of the system’s internal policies and procedures. Recommendations will be made to cut redundancies, to standardize and improve the program approval process, and utilize data to make informed decisions.